Greening Greater Toronto releases sustainable procurement guide

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TORONTO: Greening Greater Toronto, an initiative of CivicAction and Partners in Project Green, has released a tool designed to help organizations reduce costs, increase environmental performance and help create green jobs through their purchasing decisions. TheCommitment to Buy Green, Green Procurement Guide, provides tips for procurement professionals who buy products and services for public, private and not-for-profit organizations at various stages.

“Making purchasing decisions with environmental impact in mind can lead to dramatic environmental
improvements while delivering considerable cost savings,” said Linda Weichel, vice-president, partnerships at CivicAction and responsible for Greening Greater Toronto. “The Green Purchasing Guide gives buyers practical information about best practices and the green factors to consider, and vendors get insights into what green attributes buyers are looking for. This guide will help inform and inspire more green decision-making and greater action and innovation in the green products and services sector.”

A working group convened by Greening Greater Toronto and its Green Procurement Leadership Council developed the guide. The document is the latest in the green procurement toolkit assembled by Greening Greater Toronto and Partners in Project Green to help organizations boost their sustainable purchasing practices. Other tools include:

The Commitment to Buy Green: Organizations sign a pledge to reduce environmental impacts through their purchasing decisions and contribute to the collective efforts of greening the Toronto region’s buying practices.

Case studies: Examples of how organizations are embedding sustainable purchasing practices into their processes, including lessons learned and insights on overcoming obstacles. Contributors include: Ontario Power Generation, the International Centre and CIBC.

Document hub: An online portal of green procurement-related documents on best practices, policies, contract clauses, and vendor evaluation criteria to help organizations green their buying practices.

“We are pleased to be working with Greening Greater Toronto on building valuable tools to encourage sustainable purchasing practices throughout the Toronto region,” said Brian Denney, CAO of the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, the parent organization of Partners in Project Green. “The Green Purchasing Guide is the latest addition to our green procurement toolkit and we hope it will contribute to breaking down barriers to the utilization of green products and services.”

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